Gladly
Olark
| Feature | Gladly | Olark |
|---|---|---|
| Pricing | From $180/mo | From $29/mo |
| Free Plan | ✗ No | ✗ No |
| Rating | 4.5 / 5 | 4.1 / 5 |
| Best For | ecommerce-brands, luxury-retail, enterprise-support, customer-obsessed-teams | small-businesses, freelancers, sales-teams, support-teams |
| Founded | 2014 | 2009 |
| Unified Conversation | ✓ | ✗ |
| Omnichannel Inbox | ✓ | ✗ |
| Voice Support | ✓ | ✗ |
| Self Service | ✓ | ✗ |
| Customer Timeline | ✓ | ✗ |
| Task Management | ✓ | ✗ |
| Live Chat | ✗ | ✓ |
| Visitor Insights | ✗ | ✓ |
| Chat Transcripts | ✗ | ✓ |
| Custom Forms | ✗ | ✓ |
| Team Management | ✗ | ✓ |
| Automation Rules | ✗ | ✓ |
✓ Gladly Pros
- Single conversation thread per customer
- Excellent omnichannel support
- Built-in voice and messaging
- Customer-first approach
✗ Gladly Cons
- Very expensive per agent
- Enterprise-focused
- Smaller marketplace of integrations
✓ Olark Pros
- Very easy to use
- Great for small teams
- Good customization
- Accessible chat widget
✗ Olark Cons
- Limited features vs competitors
- No chatbot builder
- Basic reporting
The Verdict
Gladly is built for ecommerce brands and luxury retail, with a focus on unified-conversation and omnichannel-inbox. Olark targets small businesses and freelancers and leads with live-chat and visitor-insights.
On pricing, Olark is the clear winner for budget-conscious users — starting at $29/mo compared to $180/mo for Gladly. That $151/mo difference adds up quickly for growing teams.
Neither tool offers a free plan, so factor the subscription cost into your decision from the start.
Gladly edges out on user ratings (4.5 vs 4.1). While both are well-regarded, that gap reflects real differences in user satisfaction worth considering.
Bottom line: Gladly has a slight overall edge — but if very easy to use matters most to you, Olark may still be the right call.